


Insomniac

by fragilevixen



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Canon Divergent, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Mild Smut, POV Fox Mulder, The right tag didn't necessarily apply to humor with a side of sex, humor and smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-28
Updated: 2020-05-28
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:15:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,718
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24417988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fragilevixen/pseuds/fragilevixen
Summary: Another lonely, sleepless night, another dingy motel, and another town that isn’t home for Mulder…but, something changed, with the last gasp of the air conditioner as his partner, and best friend, chooses to walk through the adjoining door.
Relationships: Fox Mulder & Dana Scully, Fox Mulder/Dana Scully
Comments: 22
Kudos: 95





	Insomniac

**Author's Note:**

> Written during a writing exercise (and expanded/edited) in a writing workshop conducted by the amazing Vicky (@frangipanidownunder on tumblr) where we needed to focus on the “details” of a scene and explore further.
> 
> It ran away from me, in the best way.

_Not all storms come_

_To disrupt your life,_

_Some come to_

_Clear your path._

-Anonymous

Somewhere along the way, Mulder had lost count of the number of foreign beds that he had crawled into and the number of textured ceilings that he had stared up at…but this one, this one took the cake. An indent, well-worn, down the center of the mattress, had him contemplating the shape of his backside for longer than necessary as the vermillion, digital display flashed to 3:00 AM. He wanted to stretch out, get comfortable, and beg some deity for a modicum of sleep but the heat was steady, hovering above him like a cloud. Every lamp in the room was useless and only lit up small, dirty corners, flashing the sensation that he should’ve used the blacklight before chucking his shirt onto his luggage and plopping down. Or, maybe, that would’ve been the worst decision of his life.

_Fuck. Me._

Paper, thin walls. He could hear every sound outside and in the room behind him, right down to the thudding of a headboard against the wall—fast then slow. If he weren’t annoyed, there might’ve been a shred of envy buried beneath that sensation as he flicked the TV off and watched the passing headlights through a hole in the curtains. One car, a truck, another car with a headlight out…the flashing lights of an ambulance, and a cop car. His eyelids dragged, losing the battle with gravity as the moans, squeaks, and jackhammering of the bed against the wall finally slowed to a low drumming and muted, mutual whimpering.

“Jesus, is he going to finish before sunrise?” Mulder muttered at the ceiling, his tongue against the inside of his cheek as his eyes slowly blinked and muscles ached.

It might’ve been the right time for his body to give in to a semblance of sleep but those thin walls came back to haunt him as the adjoining wall gave him a not so subtle reminder of the noise level. The aloof, slumber driven giggle and a muted snore throughout the night he recognized as Scully’s from the other side of the warped door was doing nothing for his mental state as he rapidly blinked. She was already driving him crazy during the day and now she was finishing the job while he prayed that he wasn’t nestled against a pile of bed bugs ready to devour his sweaty posterior. As he thought it couldn’t get any worse, the anemic, overworked air conditioner perched just feet away finally gave a final, grinding groan and sputtered until it stopped. There was nothing left to drown out a single noise as his mouth sounded Scully’s name out, unintentionally letting it reverberate through the room until mortification took hold.

She was already standing in the doorway, looking every bit as tortured as he.

“Shit, Scully,” Mulder scrambled, hiding a considerable bulge which betrayed every salacious thought he’d been swimming in for well over an hour despite the satisfactory, soundless masturbatory moment he’d already had. “I didn’t hear you open the door.”

“I was quiet,” Scully tiptoed to the edge of the bed and nearly killed him with the braless tank top as she didn’t wait for the invite to crawl onto the dingy, threadbare bed with him. “The people in the room opposite mine have been fucking each other for the past eighteen minutes and I’ve heard nothing but cheeks slapping for most of that time. Woke me up from a dead sleep.”

Mulder was already second-guessing the smell of his sweat and was praying that she hadn’t become hyper-aware of the uninvited guest popping up to say _hello_. The one time that being born a male was proving to be problematic and it was at the second her breath touched his arm and her fingers settled along his bare ribs. Mulder hadn’t felt that kind of rush of energy or haphazard disregard for self-control since he had discovered how that body part operated on a purely sexual level. It was really too bad that brains didn’t come with an off-switch or, at the very least, a dimmer for the nerves that led to his dick.

_God dammit, Scully, the one time you crawl into bed with me._

“I don’t think you’ll get much better audio quality over here,” Mulder winced as Scully’s hand grazed his erection while reaching for the extra pillow on the side of the bed. “Erectile dysfunction in the next room can’t seem to finish the deed.”

“Mulder, why are you all sweaty?” Scully was half-asleep and granting her overheated partner little to no personal space as she shoved the extra pillow underneath her arm, snuggling against his ribs.

“The air conditioner just gave up the ghost,” Mulder crossed his legs and died inside as the smell of her shampoo invaded his nostrils, making the mildew mess of the hovel they were lying on a lot less sad. “Are you feeling okay? I can go sleep on the chair.”

The bed shifted as the emphatic, less-than-rhythmic sex act in the next room resumed, jostling the mattress and springs just enough to put the final nail in Mulder’s embarrassment coffin. Scully’s eyes widened as she tilted her head up to watch as the headboard cleared the wall a full inch every time. The poorly constructed headboard smacked a little harder as the rumblings rocked through the entire wall, down to the floorboards. Neither of them really had much experience with earthquakes, but they imagined that it was an awfully close sensation. Well, without the accompanied “yes, that’s it” and “right there, baby” in cartoonish refrain.

Mulder sighed audibly and rubbed his eyes while his partner held a hand to her mouth, stifling a laugh. It would’ve been funny but the hard-on brewing between his legs was giving him an unpleasant reminder of its presence with a twitch as he barely glanced at Scully’s chest in that Goddamn top. Of course, she had to bounce right along with it. The awkwardness wasn’t complete without noticing the subtlety of that stirring.

“I told you that you get what you pay for with these motels,” Scully was entirely too amused as Mulder stared at the inoperable fan above the bed, the layers of dust and grime peering at them like an audience. “The FBI reimburses you and it isn’t going to kill you to get the step-up from…pornographic.”

Mulder elevated his knees and groaned into his palms as the bed continued to vibrate from the extracurricular activities next door. “It’s a good thing I left my service weapon in my bag and I’m too lazy to get up to eat a bullet.”

“You wouldn’t do it even if you were within arm’s length of your gun and I wouldn’t let you. You’re not leaving me here to suffer listening to this alone,” Scully had a sleepy smile plastered on her face as she half sat up and squished the pillows against the mattress, making an ample hill to rest against as Mulder fiddled with the drawstring on his sweats. “I’d open the window, but I don’t that I really want the grunts and moans in stereo.”

“Calling my bluff when I’m covered in perspiration and it’s already sweltering in here?” Mulder scooted back and let the headboard batter his shoulder blades as he elevated his head to reach for the glass of water on the nightstand. “We don’t need the garbage-kissed breeze and an echo from both sides.”

“I think I have ice in my bucket still, let me fill your glass with it,” Scully reached for the cup in his hand as another oscillation of their neighbor’s headboard sent a heavy jiggle through, knocking her arm forward just enough that her wrist landed directly on his aching hard-on. “Mulder…”

Mulder wheezed and spilled the water on the bed as he scooted to one side, the enormity of his erection becoming less comfortable by the second as Scully’s intrigued expression had him caught off-guard. “Scully, I don’t really know what to say but I can explain. I was—and you came in—and it isn’t what it plainly looks like.”

“There doesn’t seem to be an issue with erectile dysfunction in this room,” Scully’s voice dropped an octave and curiosity burned behind her eyes as she pressed a finger to his lips, while her left hand lingered at the waistband of his pants. “Mulder, I’m not going to pretend that this motel is exactly ideal but…six years is a long time to wait.”

“Wait, you’re not serious, are you?” Mulder would’ve reached to pinch himself if it wouldn’t have made him look like a dumbass but he resembled a deerin the headlights as her feather-light touch felt like pure, white heat against his skin. “Scully…”

Scully’s face was mere inches from Mulder’s, her eyes glued to his as she leaned against her elbow, tipping the scales as she draped her leg across his thigh, biting down on her lip as she openly teased him. “Please don’t tell me I’m alone in thinking about it because I really don’t think I can handle the embarrassment.”

Mulder held back another exhale as he tilted his chin and breathed her in, brushing his mouth against hers, the tips of his fingers dragging her bottom lip down. He’d pictured something more idyllic and private for a moment like this, but the soft palm against his abdomen and heave of her chest against his side was more than enough to make every second worth it. He inhaled the sweet scent of vanilla and lilac from her lotion, letting it mingle with the masculine scent of his own body wash while slipping his tongue past her teeth to savor a long-awaited kiss. He was consumed, elated, and wholly intoxicated by the feel of her lips against his as he cradled the back of her neck, holding her close. The hum of a moan pulsed against the inside of his mouth while his hand connected with the strap of her top, pushing it down past the slope of her shoulder.

The bed hitched again and a throaty declaration resonated from the wall behind them, rippling every spring beneath them as the drumming prematurely ended their passionate embrace.

“I swear to God,” Mulder growled as the trapped erection bobbed against his sweats, rubbing against her thigh while he watched her suck her swollen bottom lip into her mouth. “If they don’t hurry up and finish—I am going to lose my fucking patience.”

“I think you might need to be paying a little more attention to something else,” Scully sat up, shimmied out of her pajama pants, and maneuvered her thighs around his waistline, straddling him until he could feel the heat against him through her panties. “More important things?”

“Jesus Christ,” Mulder involuntarily bucked his hips against her ass and held onto her hips as she pressed her fingers against his chest. “There are movies about guys who can’t pace themselves, Scully, and you just might turn me into one.”

Scully swiveled her hips, purposely tormenting him while the mattress thrummed beneath them. “I’d tell you to try but it might be hypocritical of me at this moment.”

“What made you walk through that door, Scully?” Mulder elevated to meet her and nibbled on her bottom lip, tasting her mouth while his hands worked up her back, bunching the material of her tank top at her shoulder blades. “Were you lying in your bed thinking of me like I was thinking of you?”

“I’ve been dreaming about you for days, and I heard you speak my name after I opened my eyes,” Scully raked her fingers down his biceps and let him hike her top up a little higher as the sweltering air barely moved against her. “I thought, maybe, you heard me saying yours, too.”

He gazed into her pools of steel blue, sliding further into adoration as his thumbs swept the thin material off of her pale, freckle-kissed skin. She couldn’t have been more perfect as the subtle glow peeked through the gaps in the curtains, illuminating the curves of her frame as he guided her backward until she rested against the comforter. He admired her as he hovered above and traced the inflects of her collarbone before trailing his index between her breasts as they bounced slightly. He wanted to prolong every touch, every kiss, and every nibble, but the persistence of her bedroom eyes and the quiver between his legs were prevailing. He was losing control.

Mulder caressed her inner thighs and hooked his thumbs around the elastic of her cotton panties, tugging them down in a smooth, fluid motion until she was completely stripped beneath him. “Fuck, you’re beautiful.”

“Six years of waiting, Mulder,” Scully pushed his sweats down with her inner thighs and squeezed his midsection as she reached for him. “I don’t want to wait anymore.”

For the first time, the reason they were in this shitty motel room didn’t matter as he felt her legs wrap around him. The heat of so many fantasies materialized as her throbbing center pressed against the length of him. An audible whimper shook the bed as Mulder thrust, slowly and smoothly, while setting his teeth against a waiting, hardened nipple and Scully’s chin tilted a little further back, keening up at the unmoving fan. He found rhythm in the staggering of her breaths and withdrew from her wet, trembling folds for a moment before plunging back into her a little faster. The sounds of physicality from the other side of the wall all but faded as friction and splendor manifested. Their bodies intertwined, limbs rocked, and mouths came alive with every passionate kiss. Nothing else would have diminished the electricity between them as gazes met and thrusts were met in synchronicity.

“Scully, I’m gonna…” Mulder blinked, the discomposure written on his face, as he kissed her and bucked again.

“I’m there, I’m there,” Scully urged him on, her moans overtaking breath as she neared the edge of a waiting orgasm.

The bed shuddered under the weight of their bodies as Mulder’s thighs twitched and he came, unexpectedly groaning her name as the frame wobbled beneath them. Scully rocked underneath of him, tossing her head back as his name became a confession toward the heavens while her orgasm rolled through her and gripped him like a vice. They held onto each other and the bed screeched as the final thrust set of a chain reaction that sent a corner plopping to the floor with a resounding bang. It sounded like a single clap of thunder and stopped as soon as it started.

It was the first time that the only sound they could hear was their own breaths while they scattered kisses along each other’s jawlines.

The tilt of the broken frame and the mattress that had seen better days barely held them while sweat and sex permeated into the air. Mulder rolled onto his side and pushed a pillow with his toes, shifting the sheets in the process. Scully turned her head and smiled at him, the rise and fall of her chest slowing as her heartbeats mellowed. The askew headboard peered at them, stealing a glance in their peripheral as the gap became apparent between the mattress and the wall. It was no wonder that their neighbors had gone silent. The support probably sounded horrendous as it hit the floor.

They were either concerned or had their ears pressed to the paint, desperate to hear what might happen next. 

A laugh left his lips as he glanced at the ceiling, at the painted texture as the light moved across from a passing car while his hand tapped the top of hers. She held onto his pinky and rubbed her elbow against his as the warmth radiated in the overheated room with the broken bed. She rolled and the springs whined beneath them, the downward angle of the corner a little more obvious as gravity tugged them toward the headboard.

“I don’t think we’re going to get the deposit back,” Mulder snorted.

Scully smirked and licked her lips. “I guess the air conditioner wasn’t the only thing to give up the ghost tonight.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to Monika (@MonikaFileFan), Kasey (@SlippinMickeys), and Cate (@rationalcashew) for the beta reading on this. Your advice and suggestions have been incredibly helpful! Thank you for helping me perfect this!


End file.
